WisBusiness

By Brian E. Clark WisBusiness.com MADISON – The state Building Commission approved a plan Wednesday to proceed with the sale of two pieces of surplus property worth $4.5 million, but not before two Republican legislators tried to delay the process over what they called “unanswered questions.” The pair, Reps. Jeff Fitzgerald of Horicon and Debi Towns of Janesville, said they wanted...

Governor Jim Doyle is announcing today at the State of Wisconsin Building Commission that $61 million in additional funding will be available for veterans mortgage loans.  This action makes loans available for the first time to veterans of Iraq, Afghanistan, the Balkans, Somalia, the Gulf War, Panama, Grenada, and Lebanon. Anticipating the possible enactment of federal legislation paving the way...

MADISON – New research shows technical colleges are delivering on the needs of employers.  According to survey results from the Wisconsin Technical College System, 95 percent of responding employers said they would hire technical college graduates again, proving the technical colleges are effectively addressing employers’ needs.  “This really speaks volumes for how integral technical colleges are to Wisconsin’s workforce.”...

MENOMONEE FALLS – Fifty-one percent of employees throughout Wisconsin will be working regular business hours this July 3rd, according to a recent poll on WisconsinJobs.com.  National holidays that fall in the middle of the work week like this year’s Independence Day often create a great deal of anticipation amongst workers whose vacation fate lies in the hands of their...

MILWAUKEE - Governor Jim Doyle toady announced he has appointed a high-level task force to examine the finances of Milwaukee County. "Over the past few weeks, I've become increasingly concerned about the stories coming out of Milwaukee that the county doesn't seem to be able to pay its bills," Governor Doyle said.  "Clearly, when our largest, most populous county that...

MADISON - The soaring prices of oil and natural gas have sparked a race to maketransportation fuels from plant matter instead of petroleum. Both biodiesel andgasoline containing ethanol are starting to make an impact on the market.But the oil price hike has also fueled a race to find new sources for chemicalintermediates - compounds that are the raw material...

Today the Associated Press reported that British Petroleum (BP) is being charged with illegally manipulating propane prices.  The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said Wednesday that British Petroleum traders - with the consent of senior management - "purchased enormous quantities of propane to establish a dominant" position in the market and then withheld fuel in order to drive prices higher. Governor...

MADISON - Response to the effort by John and Tashia Morgridge to jump-start theWisconsin Institutes for Discovery by providing $3 million in seed grants forresearch has exceeded expectations, generating more than 220 initial proposals.The Morgridges, both University of Wisconsin-Madison alumni, hoped the DiscoverySeed Grant program would lay the groundwork for the institutes and inspire theentire UW-Madison community to collaborate...